Monday's Muster #6

Of course, I had to come up with something related to Valentine's Day for today's collection.  What better than Valentines? Below is a sampling of a shoe box's worth. The bulk of these have been mine since... do I have to admit... the late 60s and early 70s. A few I have purchased over the years too. 

All sorts of themes, shapes, and sizes.

These two are quite large.

I must give credit to my mother for saving these when I was a kid. Sometimes, Mom does know best!

Enjoy!

First 2014 Estate Sale

I actually went to an estate sale yesterday amid flurries, cold, and snow covered streets.  First one for 2014, and the first one I've attended in quite a long stretch.  It was messy, dusty, kinda crowded with people who didn't want to joke or chit chat, but I came away with some goodies.

Ever see paper clips like these?  I never have.

There were four sewing patterns there: two newer craft ones, this 50s skirt, and the 70s number below. Odd assortment. You can barely see on the right side a plastic shoebox full of old cards.

Here are some of the better cards.  I'd say more than half was useless envelopes and not too hot 80s type Christmas cards. but what you see below made my purchase worthwhile.

How nifty is this?  It's plastic and once held a calendar. On the back there are instructions to snap off the bottom tabs then use it for "a wall plaque or hot dish pad."

There was one Valentine in that box of cards. How sweet to find this time of year. That made the trip for me!

Linking to Sir Thrift A Lot today. Thanks, all, and have a nice Sunday!

1942 Fashions

I recently bought two catalog pages from a 1942 Sears catalog From The Paper Flea Market for crafting purposes. I wanted to share the styles and prices.

I see these shoes are supposed to be thrifty, but get those prices! My local thrift stores sell shoes for higher than that today.

And boots too...

I'll take a pair of the cowboy boots.

Notice the patriotic colors?  This was during WWII. Notice the prices?

They even identified the styles by using girls' names.

These clever outfits were reversible.

Doll set too!

A nice little look back!  Thanks for stopping by.

What A Winter

This winter, especially since January, has been been quite a challenge in many regions. Mine has been no exception. The snow now piled up at corners and ends of driveways reminds me of the 70s-- we had a lot more snow back then. I could have survived without reliving that memory.

Here is a three, maybe four, foot pine in my yard a few weeks ago.

Here it is about a week and a half ago.

And here it is (or "isn't") yesterday.

Woe is us.  How much longer until Spring???

Have a good one!

Wacky Pack Wednesday

This week's Wacky is one of the easier ones to guess. The name is the same; they just changed the spelling. 

I was never too fond of Trix cereal, but my sister liked it so it was often in my house while I was growing up. My sister even has her Trix rabbit plastic cup from the 60s.

Enjoy your day!

Monday's Muster #5

A rather contemporary and silly collection today. Just what I need after last week's weather. These are Basic Fun keychains. All mini versions of popular games and vintage toys.

Each is really a mini game you can play. I didn't put Don't Break The Ice together because it is a royal pain with those teensy ice cubes, but I have done it a few times.

The original Colorforms were shapes to piece together. I never took mine apart.

A mini Barbie case with, what else, a mini Barbie inside!

The Cootie game does come apart. The tiny die and instructions are housed in the bodies.

The Candyland board flips open, and there is a drawer for the pieces.  Pretty clever.

So who knows what these are? Wizzer tops came out in the early 70s. They spin for quite a long time and occasionally make a weird sound when you wind them up, so to speak, by running the pointed end quickly over a hard surface. The two on the left I've had since then. The pink and yellow one was an anniversary reissue a few years back. This is a collection within a collection! The mini keychain version actually spins too. And, incidentally, dogs find these most interesting.

I display these on my back porch on a key rack. There is also a mini harmonic I got from a gumball machine waaaay back in the day.

Have fun!

Monkey Bread

Have you ever made Monkey Bread? My sister has this recipe in an older cookbook, Pillsbury, I think, and we've been using it for 30 years. A little work and mess but so worth it! Recipe at the bottom.

Dough before kneading.

Dough after kneading.

Dough rolled out. Mine rarely looks like a perfect rectangle.

Dough after cutting. A pizza cutter works marvels.

Dough squares layered in the pan before rising.

Dough after rising. On a bitterly cold January day, this is all I could hope for. It can be puffier in better weather.

Right out of the oven.

Right out of the pan.

Y-U-M!!

If you'd like to give it a go, here is the recipe:

3-3 1/2 C flour
2 T sugar
1 t salt
1 pkg (regular) yeast
1 C very warm water
2 T margarine
1 egg

1/3 C melted margarine

Generously grease a bundt pan.

In a large bowl, mix 1 1/2 C flour, sugar, salt, yeast, water, margarine (the 2 T), and egg. Beat well (can use electric mixer) until smooth. Stir in remaining flour until not real sticky.

Knead on floured surface until smooth. About 1 minute.

Roll on floured surface, with floured pin, to 15" x 12". Cut into diamond shaped pieces 1 1/2"-2".

Dip each piece in melted margarine and layer in bundt pan.

Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm spot for 45-60 minutes. Until doubled in size. Can take longer on cold days.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Let pan cool for a few minutes then invert onto a plate to cool. If you greased the pan well, it will pop right out. Eating it still warm is a pretty good idea.

Enjoy!